The Saints 3rd Round Pick

this is a discussion within the Saints Community Forum; The Saints 3rd round picks since 2000 (In 1999 they picked Ricky Williams in every round) have been Cie Grant, LeCharles Bentley, Kenny Smith, and Tutan Reyes. The only real difference maker in the group would be Bentley, and I ...

The Saints 3rd round picks since 2000 (In 1999 they picked Ricky Williams in every round) have been Cie Grant, LeCharles Bentley, Kenny Smith, and Tutan Reyes. The only real difference maker in the group would be Bentley, and I suppose the jury is still out on Cie.

Now here's a hypothetical situation. If the Saints, in the third round, chose Nate Kaeding, a KICKER, would you be upset?

Think about it some more, while a kicker will never be as important as, let's say, your QB, RB or MLB, more games surely are won or lost by a kicker than by your backup DT (Kenny Smith), backup LB (Cie) or by a tackle who only played in a single game his whole career (Tutan Reyes, http://www.nfl.com/players/playerpage/187632 ).

Not to mention, Carney is definitely showing his age, it has definitely affected his distance, and after last year is seemingly hurting his accuracy too.

As so many of our games come down to a kick, I don\'t think its a bad idea at all.
I guess it would depend on who was left out there in round 3. Even though, I think it\'s a really good idea to get proven players anytime we can. I\'d much rather have a sure thing kicker than a \"project\" receiver with the round 3 pick.

It would depend....on free agency and how much the Saints take care of a few needs. If they were to pick up two young studs(LB, CB, DT, or OT) and one solid player (HB, WR, LB), then I think it would give you the flexibility to do that. Bentley was a fluke- everyone was stunned that he fell to the Saints. Impact players in the 3rd round do come along, but they rarely fit the need.

Before we hang ole\' John, remember he\'s one of the most accurate kickers in the history of the league. I\'d say give him more time to get used to kicking off the new field surface. Don\'t forget, it was astro turf one day and field turf the next. Having been a pretty good kicker myself, i\'d say he can and will do it.

The Saints 3rd round picks since 2000 (In 1999 they picked Ricky Williams in every round) have been Cie Grant, LeCharles Bentley, Kenny Smith, and Tutan Reyes. The only real difference maker in the group would be Bentley, and I suppose the jury is still out on Cie.

Now here\'s a hypothetical situation. If the Saints, in the third round, chose Nate Kaeding, a KICKER, would you be upset?

Think about it some more, while a kicker will never be as important as, let\'s say, your QB, RB or MLB, more games surely are won or lost by a kicker than by your backup DT (Kenny Smith), backup LB (Cie) or by a tackle who only played in a single game his whole career (Tutan Reyes, http://www.nfl.com/players/playerpage/187632 ).

Not to mention, Carney is definitely showing his age, it has definitely affected his distance, and after last year is seemingly hurting his accuracy too.

Thoughts?

Not to be picky but LeCharles Bentley was a second rounder and I believe Tutan Reyes was a fourth or fifth round pick.

With that being said, I would be happy if the Saints drafted Kaeding, but not in the third round. If they are able to recoup a fourth rounder or pick him in the fifth, though he probably won\'t last that long, I would be estatic. He\'s a damn good kicker!

You are correct, he was drafted in the 2nd round. I think people get confused, myself included, because he was our 3rd overall pick that year, behind Stallworth and Grant.
I like Carney, but he\'s 40 years old, and retirement for him is not far away.

Yeah Sorry guys I was wrong about both Bentley and Reyes. They were the Saints 3rd selections in both drafts, But that is because the Saints had two firsts in \'02, and no 2nd or 3rd in 2000. Thanks SFinAustin for picking that up!